Tappet-actuating member



1949- J. R, WAIDELICH TAPPET AGTUATING MEMBER Filed A rillls, 1946 W M M w (/AMEJ R. WA @154 1671 A TTORNEY Patented Jan. 11, 1949 James R. Waidelich,.Naugatuck, Conn, assignor to The Bristol Company, Waterbury, Conn, a corporation of Connecticut Application April 18, 1946, Serial No. 663,083

This invention relates to cam members such as may be utilized in process time cycle controllers, and more especially to means for operating a valve or switch, or equivalent control element in a cycle controller of the cam-actuated" type wherein it is required that said valve or switch or equivalent be abruptly set in either of two significant positions at any preselected instant in the time-range of the controller. The art in process cycle controllers of the class in which the present invention lies is well exemplified in the co-pending application Serial No. 375,09'7for improvements in Process cycle controllers, filed January 21, 1941 by Harold E. Allen, and assigned to the assignee of applicant for patent on the present invention. Said application has issued as Patent No. 2,442,835.

The control instrument set forth and claimed in said H. E. Allen application includes a plurality of pilot valves adapted for abrupt opening or closing at preselected instants in a cycle of operation by means of corresponding cam members carried on a common shaft, together with means for advancing said shaft in such a manner that as the time cycle progresses said valves will be operatively engaged or disengaged by suitable conformed portions of the peripheries of said cam members. As shown in said application, each of the cam members is formed with peripheral portions having either of two definite radius values, and as the valve, actuating element is engaged thereby it will assume an open or closed position according to which of said portions participates in said engagement.

An important attribute of process cycle controllers lies in flexibility of timing adjustment, and the ease and expediency with which adjustment may be effected. In the instrument set forth in said Allen application, the cams are characterized by having their peripheral profiles definitely formed before assembly; and, while by the use of a laminated construction, there may be made possible a certain degree of flexibility in adjustment, complete adjustability requires a variety of types and forms of cam elements, involving a considerable number of spares, some of which will at all times be idle, together with the assembly problem attendant upon removing certain elements and replacing them by others.

It is an object of the present inventio to provide a combination of a quick-acting control with an actuating cam member capable of infinite adjustment, with a minimum number'of parts, and without the need for spares.

It is a further object to provide a cam meme 4, Claims. (01. fi ties) I A ber of'this nature in which means for determinon the periphery.

It is a further object to provide a cam member of the aforesaid nature in which any desired number of alternate opening and closing events may be adjustably and non-interferingly grouped upon a single cam.

It is a further object to provide an adjustable cammember of the aforesaid nature which shall be at once rugged in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, and not subject to accidental displacement of active parts, with consequent shifting of the time setting, or interference with the pie-established cycle.

In carrying out the purposes of the invention, it .isproposed to provide inv combination with valve or equivalent control means adapted to actuation by means of a tappet of the latching type, cam means comprising, in the specific embodiment herein described by way of example, a rotatablediscoid element carrying on its peripheral portion adjustably positioned identical dog members, each having an axial projection. so disposed that the action of each of said dog members with respect to either opening or closing said control means dependssolely upon the axial sense in which said projection is extended. It is further proposed so to conform and dispose each of said dog members with respect to the discoid element by which it is carried that it may be set to become operative at any point through the whole circumference thereof, thus rendering the time setting of each event controlled thereby subject to infinitely precise ad- J'ustment.

The nature of the invention, however, will best be understood when described in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1, is a perspective View of a portion of a time cycle controller incorporating the principles of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary end. elevation of a portionv of a cam member constructed according to they principles of the invention, and is shown on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation, Fig. 4 an exploded view and Fig. 5 a front elevation of a portion. of the mechanism forming said cam member.

Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings. designates a base plate carrying a bracket member ll .upon which is suitably mounted a control valve l2, which may expediently be of the type replaced by any form of control device-adaptedto actuation to either of two significant positions by means of limited excursion of a juxtaposed tappet member.

Secured to the base-plate I is a further bracket member I3, extending forwardly fromssaid base.- plate, and adapted to provide bearings for. a tappet arm I4 and a latch member I5. The' tappet arm l4 carrying a vertically adjustable tappet screw I 6, is journalled to said bracket'member 1'3 at a point nearthe base-plate I0 an'dis adapted for limited angular displacement about an :axis, whereby said screw will engage the stem I'I of the valve I2, and with displacement of said tappet arm, will actuate said valve'in a generally vertical sense in accord-ance with the displaced position of said arm. A downwardly extending portion of said tappet arm is formed into a cam follower part I8, having an inclined surface adapted to operative engagement by actuating means hereinafter to be set forth. A horizontally extending portion of said tappet arm is formed into a rest or stop-I9 adapted for'en- 'gagement by the latch member I journalled toward the outward extremity of the-bracket I3, to be supported thereby in its uppermost operating position. The latch member I5 isprovi'ded with a downwardly extending portion conformed to function as a trigger or cam follower, similar to the cam follower I8 and similarly adapted for operative engagement. The relation between the tappet arm I4 and the latch I 5is made such that when the former-has been lifted to its uppermost setting, as shown in Fig. l'of the drawings, the latch I5,'impelled by gravity-(or, if desired, by spring means not shown in-the drawing), will assume a position tosupportzthe rest I9, and-thereby the whole of the tappet arm I4, in said setting. Under this condition, the cam follower portion I8 of the tappet arm I4 will rest materially higher iii-elevation than the corresponding part'20 of the latch-member I5. Upon the cam follower 20 being liftedto' its uppermost position, the rest I 9 will be released, allowing the tappet arm I 4 to fall to its lowest setting,-actuating the valve I2 in a sense opposite to that corresponding to its former condition. While-with the tappet arm I4 depressed, the position of the latch I5 becomes of no significance, the juxtaposed faces of the stop I9 and the'latch may expediently be so formed that the latter will at that time be retained in its highest position. Thus, engagement of the cam follower I 8by suitable means will cause the valve I2 to:'be actuated in one sense (i. e. opened), and to remain so, until actuation of the cam follower 20 .by other and similar means will cause said valve'to be actuated in the opposite sense (i. e. closed).

The cam mechanism for actuating the control element I2 through the agencyof the tappetarm I4 and the latch I5, and 'to which the present invention is specifically directed, will now *be "described. A shaft 25, supported and journalled in bearing members designed to be secured'ito th base-plate I0, but not shown in the drawing, is adapted to be rotated about its axis, either continuously or intermittently, according to the nature of the process cycle to be controlled, by suitable motor means, forming no part of the present invention and not shown in the drawing, but of a nature fully set forth and described in said Allen. application,Serial"No. 375,097. Secured to theshaft to be rotated thereby in a direction as indicated by the arrow is a circular disk or plate 26, formed of flat material, and having near its periphery. a discontinuous circumferential slot or, rather, a series of slots 2'! of uniform width and concentric with said shaft. The slots are interrupted by a number of bridge pieces or spokes 28, whereby is provided supporting means for the unbroken rim of said disk.

In Figs. 3' to 5 inclusive is shown in detail a dog or actuating element, whereby the previously described tappet arm and latching mechanism are rendered responsive .to rotation of the disk 26. Foriexample, .a stud member 3| is provided at one extremity with an enlarged head portionl32, and at the otherextremity with a threaded portion 33. Intermediate said head andthreaded portions is a squared portion 34 of axial extent slightly less than the thickness of the material of the disk 26, and of a distance across its fiat faces :such as to provide a sliding fit in a slot 21 in said disk. Formed in the head portion 32 is a groove 35, disposed parallel to the diagonal of the squared portion :34, and in which .is carried in being secured therein as by soldering, brazing, or welding, an L-shapedfinger part '36, to extend radially from said head portion '32 and to project from its extremity ina sense parallel to the iongitudinal axis of said stud, .as clearly indicated in Fig. 4 of the drawings. The proportionsof said finger part 36 :are so selected with respect to those of the dis-11.26 that, when the stud 3| is placed with its squared portion 34 in a slot 21 of said disk and at an extremity of one of the sections of said slot, in contact with one of the spokes 28, the radial portion of the finger part 36,

projecting at an angle of degrees with the radius of the disk will extend'beyond the center line of said spoke, with the axially extended portion thereof disposed from the axis of the shaft 25 a distance slightly greater than the radius of the disk. Thus according to the axial direction in whichthe finger part 36 is projected, the path followed thereby will be intersected by one or other of the cam-follower portions I8 and 20, when a said cam-follower is at its lowest position.

It will be observed that the stud 3| may be placed in a slot .21 in any one of four operative positions, viz., with the axially. extended portion of the finger part 36 projecting toward the right or; toward the left, whereby to actuate respectively either the tappet .arm I4 .or the latch I5, and slopedeither forward or backward with respect to the radius of .the :disk 26, whereby the circurnferentialdisplacement of the angularly disposed finger .part 30 maybe utilized ,to span .any one of the spokes 28 towh ich it may happen to be juxtaposed, whereby the actuating elements may be-adi-ustably positioned at-anydesired location through-thewhole circumferential range about the diskmember 26. A nutr38 and an associated washer 39- adapted to cooperate with the threaded portion 33' of the stud 3| provide for-clamping thesameat {any desired setting 7about the-periphery of the disk; and it-wi-l l be apparent that, while mile. 1 four actuatingdogs are shownwassembled thereon, it is possible to utilize a greater or lesser number as occasion may demand.

I claim:

1. A cam member for actuating tappet mecha nism, comprising a rotatable supporting element having an edge portion separated from the remainder of the element by a series of arcuate slots therethrough circumferentially disposed adjacently to one another and evenly spaced in the cam member, with bridge portions separating said slots; and a stud element having a, squared section adapted to fit a slot and to be secured to the supporting element to prevent rotation of said stud element in its slot, the head of the stud element being provided with a groove disposed diagonally to the squared section, and an L-shaped finger element secured through its one portion in the said groove to extend outwardly from the said head beyond the edge portion of the rotatable supporting element with its other portion projecting in a sense parallel to the lon itudinal axis of the stud element.

2. The cam member claimed in claim 1, wherein the supporting element is a rotatable, discoid member, and the L-shaped finger element extends beyond the circumference of the supporting element with its said other portion projecting parallel to the axis of rotation of the said supporting element.

3. A cam member for actuating tappet mechanism, comprising a rotatable discoid plate having in its peripheral portion a series of arcuate slots of uniform width separated from one another by bridge parts, and a stud member adapted to be positioned in any one of said slots and means to secure the same therein at any desired circumferential location, said stud member having a part integral therewith extended radially from its axis and carrying an engaging element, and said stud member having also a portion of square section with its diagonal substantially parallel to said extended part and sides of width corresponding to that of said slots, whereby the stud may be secured therein to limit the angular disposition of said stud about its axis for extension beyond the ciri cumference of the discoid plate to either of two mutually perpendicular settings-in one of which settings said extended part, with respect to the direction of rotation of said plate, will extend forwardly of the axis of the stud and in the other rearwardly thereof.

4. A cam member for actuating a mechanism having an engaging portion operatively displaceable in a plane, comprising a discoid plate juxtaposed to said mechanism and rotatable about its axis in a sense substantially parallel to said plane, and having in its peripheral portion a series of arcuate slots of uniform width separated from one another by bridge parts and forming elements in a circle of radius insuificient to intersect said engaging portion, a stud member adapted to be positioned in any one of said slots and means to secure the same therein at any desired circumferential location,said stud member having a part integral therewith extended radially from its axis and carrying an element adapted for cooperation with said engaging portion of said mechanism to actuate the same when said stud is secured in said slot with said extended part positioned to describe a circle of radius sufiicient to intersect said engaging portion, said stud member having also a portion of square section with its diagonal substantially parallel to said extended part and sides of width corresponding to that of said slots, whereby when secured therein to limit the angular disposition of said stud about its axis to either of two mutually perpendicular settings wherein said extended part may describe said last-named circle, and in one of which positions said part, with rotation of said plate, will lead and in the other of which lag, the radius passing through the point on said first-named circle at which said stud is secured, the circumferential span of said extended part due to its angularity with said radius being at least half the width of one of said bridge parts, whereby to render said cooperating element carried thereby positionable to any location about the periphery of saidplate.

JAMES R. WAIDELICH.

REFERENCES orrEn The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 942,843 Potter et al Dec. 7, 1909 1,492,492 Talbot Apr. 29, 1924 1,890,494 Borden Dec. 12, 1932 1,960,020 McGall May 22, 1934 2,100,876 Schneider Nov. 30, 193 

